About 3RF Australia

Who Are We?

3RF Australia is an entirely volunteer-based, not-for-profit organisation focusing primarily on providing the community with quality astronomical services and education as well as providing opportunities for the general public to become actively involved in astronomy-based activities.

What Do We Do?

Local and Regional Star Parties
One of 3RF's main activities is to assist and support various local and regional star parties by providing and operating a number of large telescopes for public Sky Tours. Regular star parties supported by 3RF include the South Pacific Star Party, the Border StarGaze, and the IceInSpace Astro Camp to name but a few. For more information on these and other events, please visit our Events Page or Contact Us.

Public Astronomy Nights
In keeping with our charter to promote public interest and education in Astronomy, 3RF coordinates a variety of informal public astronomy nights as well as supporting and assisting other organised public events such as the recent Parramatta Park Public Astronomy Night, coordinated by Parramatta Park Trust as a part of the International Year of Astronomy. With an estimated 2000-3000 people attending this free event, 3RF provided and operated a number of large telescopes to treat over 1,500 people to wonderful views of the night skies with many of those people being first-time observers.

School and Community Groups
With Education and Outreach being some of the core activities of 3RF, we coordinate regular observing nights for students and teachers at schools around Sydney and the NSW Central Coast areas. These nights prove to be extremely popular with students and return visits are regularly sought by those schools which have participated in these events. We also visit local Scout and Guide groups on request as well as a variety of other Community groups.

Astronomy Outreach and Education for remote Indigenous Communities
In keeping with our charter to promote public interest and education in Astronomy, 3RF offers a variety of formal and informal astronomy outreach and educational opportunities to remote Indigenous communities throughout Australia.

Private Observing Sessions and Corporate Astronomy Nights
3RF also offers services to private groups for a wide range of events including personalised observing sessions and corporate astronomy nights. To book your next private observing session or corporate event, please Contact Us for further details.

Targeted Star Parties
Another of 3RF's regular activities is assisting observers from the Northern Hemisphere by providing them with the opportunity to experience the grandeur of the southern skies without the need for them to transport large telescopes. The annual OzSky Star Safari (formerly known as the Deepest South Texas Star Safari) has been the main vehicle for this form of international support and has grown into a very popular event in recent years. For more information on the OzSky Star Safari, please visit our OzSky Star Safari page.